## 1. Quick Introduction
**Main Character:** aureliathepanda, an active Reddit member on the r/PassiveIncomeAI subreddit, joined in October 2024. This person enjoys experimenting with AI-powered passive income methods, and their ElevenLabs post became the biggest hit, achieving 238 post karma and 68 comment karma. Clearly loved by the community!
**Implementation Timeline:** Started in May 2024, updated through October 31, 2024 (approximately 6 months). Key milestones:
– **May 2024:** Recorded and uploaded first voice
– **September 2024:** Uploaded second voice
– **October 2024:** Reached over $1,000, published case study on Reddit
**Location:** Not specifically disclosed, but aureliathepanda uses Stripe for payments, meaning they’re in a Stripe-supported country (like US, Canada, EU, etc.). Customer base includes global ElevenLabs users working on audiobook, video, advertising projects, etc., with over 30 supported languages, so no geographical limitations.
## 2. How the Money Is Made
Aureliathepanda earns money primarily through selling AI voice clones, combined with a bit of income from referral links. Here’s how:
### Passive Income From AI Voices
Selling voice clones on the ElevenLabs Voice Library, earning money based on the number of characters used in others’ projects (audiobooks, videos, ads, etc.). This is the main source, generating over $1,000 (€1,046.31) from May to October 2024.
### Referral Income
Using ElevenLabs referral links (50% off first month of Creator plan), but didn’t disclose earnings. This appears to be a minor source, not significant compared to Voice Library.
### How the Money Flows
Users upload high-quality recordings (minimum 30 minutes, recommended 2-3 hours) to create professional AI voices. Voices are listed on the Voice Library, and whenever someone uses them, owners receive payment based on character count converted to speech:
**Old Rate:** Up to $0.20/1,000 characters (applied to first voice, uploaded May 2024)
**New Rate:** $0.03/1,000 characters for new voices (from around June 2024). If achieving HQ (High Quality) badge, can set higher custom rates (per November 20, 2024 update)
**Time Correlation:** 1,000 characters ≈ 1 minute of audio, meaning ~33 minutes of audio needed to earn $1 at $0.03 rate
### Income Statistics (from dashboard screenshots)
**Total Received:** €1,046.31 (~$1,100 USD, depending on exchange rate) through 9 payments from October 26 to December 26, 2024
**Examples:**
– €66.62 (November 25, 2024)
– €47.40 (November 10, 2024)
– €2.13 (December 5, 2024)
**Pending Income:** $55.65
### Operating Costs
**Creator Plan:** $11 (first month, 50% off), then $22/month. Aureliathepanda downgraded to Starter plan ($5/month) after uploading voice
**Microphone:** Not specified exactly, but recommends USB mic (~$30–50) or XLR (~$100–200)
**Software:** Audacity (free)
**Total Initial Cost:** ~$50–100 (USB mic ~$30, Creator plan ~$11, 1–2 months Starter plan ~$10). With XLR mic, costs could reach ~$150–250
### Potential
– At $0.03 rate, need ~33.3 million characters (~555 hours audio) to earn $1,000. At $0.20 rate, only need ~5 million characters (~83 hours)
– First voice ($0.20) accounts for most income, showing huge potential if achieving custom rates
– Aureliathepanda predicts income will increase as ElevenLabs expands and AI voice demand explodes (forecast even hotter in 2025)
**Special Note:** This model is super new, leveraging AI voice cloning technology to earn passive income with minimal initial effort. Low cost, no ads needed, but depends on voice quality and usage level. Risk is low payment rate for new voices, no guarantee your voice will be “hot,” and dependence on ElevenLabs policies.
## 3. Tools Used
Aureliathepanda used both AI and non-AI tools to create and sell voices. Let’s review:
### AI Tools
**ElevenLabs:**
**Purpose:**
– Create AI voice clones from recordings
– Store and distribute voices on Voice Library
– Track income via dashboard, payments through Stripe
**Strengths:** Supports over 30 languages (English, Spanish, Japanese, French, Hindi, etc.), suitable for global market. Requires high-quality recording (recommended 2-3 hours) to achieve accuracy and HQ badge. Has tags/descriptions to optimize search (example: “narrator”, “calm voice”, “British accent”)
**Audacity (editing support):**
**Purpose:** Edit recordings, remove noise, silence gaps, export high-quality WAV files
**Strengths:** Free, easy to use, supports MP3/WAV export (WAV recommended)
### Non-AI Tools
**Microphone (USB or XLR):**
**Purpose:** Record high-quality voice
**Strengths:** USB mic (~$30–50, like Blue Yeti) good enough for beginners. XLR mic (~$100–200, like Audio-Technica AT2020) for more professional quality
**Stripe:**
**Purpose:** Receive payments from ElevenLabs
**Strengths:** Need to check if your country is supported before starting
**Reddit:**
**Purpose:** Share case study, attract users via referral links, build community credibility
**Strengths:** Post achieved 238 karma points, 68 from comments, showing extremely high engagement
## 4. Implementation Process
Aureliathepanda divided the process into 3 stages, very clearly:
### Stage 1: Preparation and Recording (May 2024)
**Actions:**
– Register ElevenLabs, upgrade to Creator plan ($11 first month, 50% off)
– Buy or use USB/XLR mic, record 1-3 hours in quiet room, no background noise
– Edit recording with Audacity to remove noise (like fan sounds, traffic), silence gaps
– Choose appropriate speaking style (example: audiobook reading if targeting audiobooks)
**Details:**
– First voice recorded 1 hour (not optimal, but okay), second voice recorded September 2024 (duration unclear)
– Audio file max 1.5GB, prefer WAV format
**Results:**
– Completed first recording, ready to upload
– **Cost:** ~$41 (USB mic ~$30, Creator plan ~$11)
### Stage 2: Create and Share Voice (May–June 2024)
**Actions:**
– Upload recording to ElevenLabs, select Professional Voice Cloning
– Record verification sentence to prove voice ownership
– Add optimized descriptions and tags (like “deep voice”, “narrator”, “soothing”) for easy search
– Share voice on Voice Library, set payment rate ($0.20/1,000 characters for first voice)
**Details:**
– First voice uploaded May 2024, leveraging high $0.20 rate
– Downgraded to Starter plan ($5/month) after uploading to save costs
**Results:**
– First voice started earning from June 2024
– **Total Cost:** ~$46 ($41 + $5 June Starter plan)
### Stage 3: Growth and Expansion (July–October 2024)
**Actions:**
– Uploaded second voice (September 2024) on separate account (due to 1 voice/account limit, unless achieving HQ badge)
– Track income via ElevenLabs dashboard, receive payments through Stripe (9 times from October 26 to December 26, 2024)
– Share case study on Reddit (October 31, 2024), use referral link to increase credibility
– Payment rate update (November 20, 2024): HQ voices can set custom rates
**Details:**
– First voice ($0.20) accounts for ~90–95% income. Second voice ($0.03) contributes less due to being new
– Income fluctuates (€2.13 to €66.62), showing uneven usage
– No promotion beyond Reddit, relies entirely on organic search on Voice Library
**Results:**
– **Revenue:** €1,046.31 (~$1,100 USD) from two voices
– **Operating Costs:** ~$76 ($46 + $5/month x 6 months Starter plan)
– **Net Profit:** ~$1,024, profit margin ~93%
## 5. Results Achieved
### Money Earned
**Total:** €1,046.31 (~$1,100 USD) from May–October 2024, plus $55.65 pending
**Breakdown:**
– First voice ($0.20 rate) is the “star”
– Second voice ($0.03 rate) contributes ~5–10%
### Activity
**Reddit:**
– Post achieved 238 karma points, 68 comment points, with over 30 comment interactions
– r/PassiveIncomeAI community asked many questions about audio quality, languages, payment rates
**ElevenLabs:**
– Two voices uploaded (May, September 2024)
– Estimated:
– First voice: ~5 million characters (~5,000 minutes)
– Second voice: ~3–5 million characters (~3,000–5,000 minutes)
– 9 payments from October 26 to December 26, 2024, ranging €2.13–€66.62
### Other Achievements
– Created completely passive income model, no additional work after setup
– Inspired Reddit community, encouraged people to try AI voice cloning
– Learned recording skills, audio editing, search optimization on Voice Library
### Challenges
– $0.03 rate for new voices is low, need super hot voice to earn a lot
– Recording and editing takes 3–6 hours/voice
– Depends on ElevenLabs search algorithm and market demand
– No guarantee voice will be used, risk losing ~$50–100 initial investment
## 6. Lessons Learned
### What Made This Successful
**Audio Quality:** 1-hour recording (though not optimal) still succeeded thanks to good mic and careful editing. Recommended 2-3 hours to achieve HQ badge
**Early Timing:** Uploaded first voice May 2024, leveraged $0.20 rate, earned more
**Search Optimization:** Specific tags/descriptions (like “soothing voice”, “audiobook narrator”) help voice get selected more
**Low Costs:** Downgraded to Starter plan ($5/month), maintained high profit (~93%)
### What Was Creative?
**Leveraging New Technology:** Voice cloning still new, less competition, helped access market early
**Transparency:** Shared dashboard screenshots, answered in detail on Reddit, built credibility and attracted users via referral links
**Diversification:** Uploaded second voice to experiment, though less effective, shows expansion mindset
### Challenges and Solutions
**Low Rate ($0.03):** Target HQ badge to set higher rate, focus on audio quality
**Time-Consuming (3–6 hours):** Use free Audacity, cheap mic (~$30) to save
**No Usage Guarantee:** Optimize tags/descriptions, follow trends (audiobooks, YouTube videos) to choose recording style
**ElevenLabs Dependence:** Plan to try other AI voice platforms for diversification
### Suggestions for Beginners
**Start Small:**
– Buy USB mic (~$30, like Blue Yeti), download Audacity (free)
– Register ElevenLabs Creator plan ($11 first month via discount link)
– Record 1 hour in quiet room, edit with Audacity, upload to Voice Library
**Build System:**
– Choose speaking style (audiobooks, ads, etc.)
– Add optimized tags/descriptions (like “calm voice”, “Spanish accent”)
– Downgrade to Starter plan ($5/month) after uploading
**Marketing:**
– Share voice on Reddit, X, AI forums
– Follow trends on ElevenLabs (hot languages, styles)
– Target HQ badge with 2-3 hour recordings, XLR mic if possible
**Initial Cost:** ~$50–100 (mic ~$30, Creator plan ~$11, Starter plan ~$10 for 2 months)
**Learn Skills:**
– Watch Audacity tutorials on YouTube
– Read ElevenLabs Voice Library, Professional Voice Cloning documentation
– Join r/PassiveIncomeAI to learn from community
**Important Notes:**
– Only record your own voice to avoid copyright violations
– Check if Stripe supports your country
– Be patient 3–6 months, income may be slow if voice not yet “hot”
*Note: Timelines may have errors, focus more on the idea.*
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